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Bloomquist cautious about back in rehab outings

Bloomquist cautious about back in rehab outings

PHOENIX -- On paper, D-backs infielder Willie Bloomquist's rehab game in the Arizona League on Thursday went fairly well, as the veteran collected a triple and drove in three runs.

But at some point during the game, his back began acting up again, forcing an early exit. Bloomquist, 34, was placed on the 15-day disabled list Aug. 11, retroactive to Aug. 9, because of a strained lower back.

"It was one of those things where it started, it wasn't feeling how I expected it to feel," Bloomquist said. "It was feeling great the last week. I was taking groundballs and stuff but when I got into a game, it wasn't feeling how it needed to feel."

Bloomquist initially thought about pushing through the discomfort, but decided against it to be more cautious and take more time.

"Instead of playing, I had to be smart about it and not blow out in a rookie ball game," he said. "I didn't want to go back to square one. The best thing to do was to stay off it and take a couple days to get back at it."

Back at Chase Field on Saturday, Bloomquist went through some light baseball activity and his nagging back began to improve again.

"He feels better today, we'll see how he feels tomorrow, maybe he'll get back at it," D-backs manager Kirk Gibson said. "There is no time table, we'll just play it by ear. We'll work him out and see if he feels okay and if that goes good we'll do a little more activity. Hopefully we can get over the top."